The vintages of the Domaine de La Banate

2018

The winter is rather soft and with a lot of small rains. The water has penetrated the soil and rebuild the water stock. In February, the pruning is over, everthing is in place for a new season. The spring is wet and wram, giving a important quantity of flowers. The spring rains put mildew on the grapes and extended the period of polenization. The hot and dry summer and some nice showers (80mm on August 9th, 15mm on August 12th) were favorable to a good evolution of the maturity. The grape pickers have picked from October 1 to 5 only the bunches well ripe. We will have a vintage well built, with a lot of material, finesse and a good length.

2017

A very soft and dry winter, the dry and warm months of March and April, the vegetation starts with 10 days in advance.
This advance is lost by the cold of late April and early May. Fortunately, the frost of 26 and 27 April only marginally damages the vineyard of the domaine and the May rains refill the stock of
water. The flowering went well in the course of a normal June, the suppression of unwanted buds and shoots and the trellising by hand are completed. Jully, August and September are very dry and warm, they see only 50mm of rain fall and under these dry conditions, the maturity is difficult to build. The grape pickers pick up nice healthy ripe fruit from 22 to 26 September, the quality will be there.

2016

After a soft winter and a slightly cool spring (start of vegetation 2 weeks later than average), the summer was very hot and very dry (record of drought over 10 years), which slowed the maturation of the grapes. There was no need for leaf stripping, the grapes remained protected from the sun by a curtain of leaves. Just 40mm of rains in September completed the maturity, helped by hot days and cold nights. The harvest in early October offered a perfectly mature and healthy harvest.

The red wines have a dense and dark color with very high levels of anthocyanins and very beautiful tannic structures suggesting an exceptional guard potential.

The rosé 2016 is a moeleux balanced by some bubbles. It present a very beautiful fruity taste and remains completely "natural".

2015

A rather mild winter, a warm and normally rainy spring, a hot and dry summer with a few thunderstorms to water the vines as needed, and a harvest in late September under optimal conditions of maturity and health.

In short a very great vintage with a very beautiful structure a lot of material and great aging potential.

2014

A rainy and mild winter refilled the stocks of water, the spring rather not too hot and a little wet gave the vine a little ahead, ahead lost by a summer a little cold and rainy. The harvest was done in early October at a very good level of maturity and without much misery in terms of sanitary.

The 2014 vintage is described by Roberto Petronio in the article "ENTRE ARDECHE ET ALPILLES - Rediscover the Côtes-du-Rhône,
The most popular wines of France" of "La Revue du Vin de France"of April 2017:

This cuvee is masterly, sculpted deeply with relief and silk, sap and a beautiful spine with clean and pure fruit. A wine carried by the richness of the year and a beautiful energy. Nice discovery.

2013

A cold rainy spring gave a little delay to the start of the vegetation, then a period of hectic bloom which caused the Grenache to flow fairly well, followed by a just satisfying summer that did not allow to recover the delay. A rainy autumn and harvests between rains at a level of maturity just sufficient and a health condition requiring the attention of grape harvesters.

A vintage on freshness with moderate alcoholic degrees, giving balanced wine with beautiful acidities and a lot of fruit.

2012

A very rough winter with 2 weeks of strong frost in late February that dampened the vineyard, and put many old vines to shreds. A spring not strongly engaging followed by an hot and dry summer and harvests a little rainy in late September with a beautiful maturity and good health.

The appreciation of the vintage is left to Marc Vanhellemont in his article "The corner of the Belgians" by "Les 5 du Vin" of May 13, 2015:

Medium garnet, he breathes the underwood, spices, fruit pastes. We find the latter immediately in the mouth, currant, quince, burlat show the softness of their bay, the succulence of their flesh, their freshness. Spices powder its tannic silk. A beautiful discovery that repeats for the next vintage, fresh and delicate. The potential of 2015 promises ...